Manchester United manager admits he left the squad short in attack
Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal has admitted he left the squad short in attack ahead of the season.
The Red Devils lost the likes of Radamel Falcao, Robin van Persie, Javier Hernandez and James Wilson throughout the summer, with two leaving permanently and Falcao leaving due to his loan-deal expiring.
The summer sales left United with just Wayne Rooney as a known striker, until Anthony Martial arrived on Transfer Deadline Day.
However, the club still just have two strikers at their disposal, and with goals a real struggle to find at the minute, Van Gaal has admitted he made a mistake letting so many strikers go without replacing them.
Transfer Mistake
When asked about his lack of firepower up front and whether he should have either signed more or kept more, he said:Â “Maybe you are be right but that you cannot see in advance. The problem [lack of goals] can be solved with money but also on the training pitch.
“We are always looking for solutions. We are working on it in training but scoring goals is a quality. We have that quality but, at this moment, there is a lack of confidence at the right time. Or we need to buy another striker.
“I don’t believe too much in competition,” added Van Gaal. “I believe in trust and confidence. Maybe that is wrong but I have done it all my life as a manager. I give trust to the players who are in those positions.
“We could have kept all the strikers but then there would have been a lot of strikers in the tribune [stand]. They are not happy then. They want to go away. It is the story of Hernandez for example. He wants to play.
“Too many strikers of high quality for the same position means too much pressure but now I don’t have the chance to change.”
Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt
